Of Men & Monsters
by Thoughts in Chaos
Summary: A handful of survivors band together for survival against a chaotic new world order and discover find that zombies aren't the only monsters the end of days unleashed. What do you do when men can be more of a threat than the monsters? Miz/Alicia Fox/Titus O'Neil, Heath Slater, Kaitlyn, Damien Sandow and others.
1. Chapter 1

_I figured since Alicia has played the 'bad girl' in a few of my more recent stories it was time to reverse her role. What can I say, I like to try and keep things even sometimes._

_Also this was somewhat inspired by a reignited interest in all things zombie from watching 'The Walking Dead' seasons one and two, you wouldn't believe the amount of mock EAS Youtube videos I've watched over the past couple of days to really get in the zone of a Z-Day apocalypse. No matter how many times I heard it though, the monotone of the attention signal always creeps me out just that little bit. I've wanted to try my hand at a horror story for a while, so here goes nothing._

_Credit for the bulk of the EAS dialogue announcements goes to a clip on Youtube posted by TheDuncanChrist._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

Alicia Fox had never been so terrified in all her life.

The day before had been no different from any before it; she woke up, did her usual routine of morning exercise before getting ready and heading off to work as a pharmacist at a small chemist store in the heart of Philadelphia. When she had come home, relieved to finally be able to kick off her shoes after spending a long day on her feet, it was to the sight of a surprise dinner set out on the back patio by her fiancé. Over a meal of grilled chicken and salad with a chilled bottle of white wine they talked, laughed or just shared a loving look over the soft light of the pair of candles in the warm Pennsylvania summer twilight. Little did either of them know when they woke up the next day to do the ritual of the daily nine to five grind that their lives, and the world at large, would be changed forever.

It wasn't until about noon when the first reports of random violent attacks made the radio's hourly news. At first no-one thought much of it, Philly was a large city after all and as such had it's share of lunatics that would creep up from time to time. A mere three hours later, however, it was quickly becoming an chaotic epidemic that rapidly engulfed the city of brotherly love. Deciding to close up early her boss sent all his employees home to their families. By the time she had made it through all the traffic and gotten home, Alicia turned the television on only to find the Emergency Alert System had taken over all stations. The chilling noise of the three SAME header bursts followed by the attention signal was unnerving, the message announced by the automated voice was down right terrifying. For some as of yet unknown reason a group of seemingly infected people were attacking and killing others like rabid animals and they seemed to be growing in numbers. She sat on the edge of the sofa cushion with hands clasped tightly together in an almost nauseating anxiety as she thought about her man trapped on the other side of town in his office, for it was practically in ground zero.

The sound of her mobile phone sounded harsh and overly loud in the tense atmosphere, making her jump. Turning the TV down she quickly glanced at the caller ID before answering, the disturbing noises that filtered through not helping her current state of worry. "Mike!? Please tell me you're alright!"

"Alicia!" His voice almost cracked with relief at the sound of her voice. "I don't know what's going on but it's absolute chaos outside!" She could only sit and listen as he took the phone away from his ear as someone called out to him and heard as he crossed the room, then he was slamming into something with force. "I can't stay on the line for long so listen closely. I want you to pack up what you need and grab the emergency kit, put it all in the truck and get as far out of the city as possible. Stay off the highways if you can."

He swore as he almost dropped his phone and the sound of something akin to a mindless mob desperately trying to get into his office came to her ear and was unable to contain the fear that so desperately wanted an outlet. "Please, baby, tell me you're OK!"

"Don't worry about me." He replied and she could hear the strain in his voice trying to control his own dread about whatever was trying to get to him and his workmates. "Just do what I said and don't stop for _anything_."

"Mike..." Alicia felt the prick of tears in the corner of her eyes as she fought desperately not to break down on the phone. Unable to think of anything else she said the first thing that instinctively came to mind, "I love you."

"I love you too." With that there was a tremendous crash followed by yelling before the line went dead. Scared and alone she cried out helplessly as the TV continued to repeat the same message it had for the past hour.

_'This is a message is transmitted at the request of the Pennsylvania State Police. There have been reports of multiple attacks across the state, hordes of people are attacking others with no provocation. The attackers are moving after anyone they see and are attempting to bite them. So far there have been 53 confirmed fatalities and hundreds more injured. It is unknown what is causing this wide spread violence. Please stay in your homes, lock all doors and windows and wait for further instructions as they become available. _

_This has been a transmission of the Emergency Alert System. Continue listening for further updates.'_

Essentials. Emergency kit. Truck. The brisk instructions Mike had given her raced over and over again in her mind. With a shaky breath she wiped at the escaping tears then stood up and headed to their bedroom. Pulling out a suitcase from the closet she began hastily stuffing it with a variety of clothes before quickly changing into something she could move more quickly and freely in than the short skirt and heeled shoes she currently sported. Shaking hands struggled with the zips as she knelt down on the lid to better close it then began to haul it out before her eyes came across Mike's night stand. Hesitating for only the briefest of moments she darted to it and opened the draw, inside lay a loaded .45 ACP pistol. She had never liked the idea of a gun in the house, Alicia had only tolerated it because Mike had been a licensed instructor and insisted she learn how to at least handle the weapon. As she picked it up, the cold steel felt heavy in her hands and looked at it for a moment before stuffing it under her belt, making sure the safety was firmly on before she did so.

Mike Mizanin had been bought up by a father that had been raised during the cold war, his grand father a surviving soldier of the Korean war, and thus had drilled into his son the importance of having an emergency kit in the house for 'just in case'. She had never given much thought to his insistence of having one and for her to know exactly where it was but now was incredibly thankful he had, for she wouldn't have known what to grab aside from food and water. After pulling back the tray's canvas cover she hauled the suitcase into the back of a mud covered Ford 150 that was sitting in the garage. With difficulty she struggled to get the two large army surplus ammo crates that consisted of Mike's emergency kit, apart from some first aid supplies she had no idea what was in them but had a feeling it wouldn't be long before she was forced to find out. Making one last quick sweep of the house she rolled up the garage door... and screamed.

Their neighbour, and old man by the name of Gerald Brisco, was a scant four feet away when he turned; a nasty looking and bleeding wound on his left forearm. It wasn't the wound that scared her though, it was his eyes; the normally cheery warm brown had gone opaque. Let out a raspy moan as he lunged, missing her by inches as Alicia dashed out of the way and retreated further into the garage, pulling the handgun from her jeans with shaking hands. Despite her warnings Gerald show no signs of backing off as he shuffled towards her, squeezing the trigger the weapon positively roared in the confined space and made her ears ring almost painfully. "Stay back, Mr Brisco!" She pleaded desperately, her humanity clinging frantically onto the fact that it was only this morning they had shared their usual friendly morning conversation as she returned from her morning run as he retrieved his newspaper. "I don't want to kill you!"

The bullet slammed into the old man's shoulder, jerking him back a step but he didn't go down. He kept onward, pressing in on her with those mindless eyes and haunting moan, causing her to trip over. Panicking, the gun went off again and his head snapped back with the force of the bullet that smashed through the bridge of his nose and out the back of his skull, lodging itself somewhere in the brickwork. He slumped to the ground blood speckling over the bottom of her pants. On the verge of what felt like a panic attack she scrambled into the safety of the truck and locked the doors dropping the keys several times before getting them into the ignition. The engine came to life with a powerful growl, the stereo fraying her already taxed nerves even more with a blast of hard rock music. Turning it down she switched it to the radio just in time for that ever creepy attention signal of the EAS.

_'This message has been transmitted at the request of the Pennsylvania Department of Health & Disease Control. This is an update on the ongoing situation. People who have been bitten or otherwise attacked are reporting are losing body temperature at a rapid rate, pulses are dropping and it is becoming extremely difficult to move in any way. This disease is somehow being transferred in the attacks. If you or someone you know has been attacked, try to get them to a hospital as soon as possible before the infection worsens. _

_This has been a transmission of the Emergency Alert System. Continue listening for further updates.'_

She took one last glance at Gerald's unmoving body and the sizable hole the round from her gun had left in the back of his skull. Shifting the gears into reverse the truck lurched down the drive way and pulled sharply out onto the road. Outside she was witness to her once quiet and friendly street erupting in scene that looked like it was ripped straight out of a bad horror movie. Gunning the engine the Ford tore out of the cul de sac and onto the main road as more of the same whipped by her as she sped along. Keeping to Mike's last instruction she went off road and cut through a park when she approached an intersection where a huge accident was beginning to choke any chance of any car getting past it.

The closer she got to the city limits the only thing she could think of was Mike, hoping with every fibre of her being that he was safe and she would see him again.


	2. Chapter 2

_This was surprisingly difficult to write, normally I'm pretty good with these sort of scenes but it was being ridiculously stubborn. I'm still not sure if I'm entirely happy with the end result to be honest, but we'll see how it goes... Perhaps it was I really didn't think this story would get any attention at all seeing as I plan to use mainly wrestlers that you don't normally see in stories. So sorry, Cena, Orton and even fellow Punk and Wade fans, they're not going to be here. At all. Hopefully now that it's finally out the story will start to flow easier._

_In the mean time, enjoy!_

* * *

It had been several weeks since the outbreak, the strange illness that had swept not only through Philadelphia but other major capitol cities across the country, spreading like wildfire. Not knowing where else to go Alicia had travelled south; she had family living on the coast in Miami, her father in particular was an avid sailor and owned his own vessel. Perhaps if they could get out onto the water they could wait out this insanity until the government could finally find a way to stop it. It wasn't long before she began to come across other people fleeing the horror as she travelled the roads; some friendly, others not. It was during her first encounter with the latter that she had met a man by the name of Titus O'Neil; a large, powerfully built individual who had come home from deployment overseas after several tours of duty barely a month before.

Despite the new world that was emerging being barely a scant couple of weeks old, already those who were easily swayed by opportunity and not bothered by conscience cruised the roads and preyed on the fleeing masses. Alicia had been travelling deep through the back roads of Maryland in an attempt to keep off the I-95 and other major byways, steering well clear of Baltimore. A few miles out of a town called New Windsor she saw someone standing in the middle of the road frantically waving their arms in the air next to a beat up looking Dodge resting on the side of the road that sat at the top of a bend. She began to slow down while debating if she should stop and help, despite Mike's last words telling her not to stop for anything. The guy looked harmless enough, and who wanted to be stranded not knowing when those... things would show up? At the same time she was telling herself this, Alicia's eyes darted to the pistol that was sitting beside her on the seat to reassure herself it was within easy reach.

Decision made the dust covered truck pulled up a few feet away from where the stranger was and wound down the window as he jogged towards the driver's side door. "Thank god, I thought I'd be stuck here!" he said with an appreciative sigh, "Listen, you gotta help me. My buddy is injured and I don't know what to do."

"Was he bitten?" She asked warily.

"No! God, no." He ran a shaky hand through curly hair, "We came up on a farm house about twenty miles or so up the road that looked abandoned, so we decided to check it out and see if we could scavenge some supplies. Next thing we know there's this lunatic that comes out of nowhere and starts shooting up the place. We ran but my friend ended up with a bullet in his shoulder." Looking up at her with anxious eyes he continued with his plea, "Please, I've bandaged it up the best I can but I really don't know what else I can do."

He sounded sincere, hell he even looked like it, but something just felt off about the situation. Alicia seemed to waver in what she should do when a pain filled moan came from the other side of the pick up followed by a voice that sounded completely miserable. "Terry, where are you? This shit fucking hurts, man."

"I'll be there in a second!" Terry called back, then once again focused on the Ford's driver. "Please... help us."

Quickly slipping the ACP under her belt, Alicia then grabbed a small first aid kit from under the seat and opened the door, "Let's go take a look at your friend."

Terry let a small predatory grin slip past as he fell in step just behind her and she headed toward the car where is partner lay in wait. His eyes darted down towards the beautiful woman's ass then travelling down her long legs, taking note of the gun she carried at her side but couldn't see any other visible weapons. He found himself thinking that this was almost to easy, and to land a chick like this one driving a truck with who knew what sort of goodies packed away in the tarp covered tray? Today was a good day for hunting indeed.

A second man was leaning up against the front tire on the passenger side, his hand clutched over a bloodied array of bandages wound around his left shoulder. Watery grey eyes set in a rugged, weather beaten face looked up at her. "Help me."

"What's your name?" Alicia asked as she knelt down beside him and opened the small green and white tin box.

"Mike."

She hesitated for a second, the name bringing up unbidden thoughts of her Mike and the horrible noises that she had heard over the cell phone when he called her. She had hoped that he had gotten out alive and would call her again, but in the chaos communications had been overwhelmed and ultimately failed even quicker than anyone had predicted. All she was left with was gaping, gnawing uncertainty; knowing that the odds of his survival weren't good but at the same time couldn't bring herself to truly believe it had been the end for him unless she saw fer herself his body, walking around or not.

Mike looked over her head at Terry, who had stood to Alicia's left where her gun sat snugly against her hip while the woman was preoccupied, and a knowing look passed between them. The pair had been hunting up and down this stretch of road for a few days now, surprised at the pickings to be had by people trying to avoid the highways and other major roads. Today's catch was the best so far; it wasn't often they caught a lone traveller in their web, let alone one anywhere near as pretty as this one. When she turned her attention back to him Mike instantly schooled his features back into the pained mask he had been wearing.

Alicia noticed that he seemed reluctant to let go of his shoulder. Under the circumstances she doubt she could blame him. "You're going to have to let it go if you want me to try and help you," she said as calmly as she could, though the longer she lingered in the presence of these two the more she felt on edge. The way this guy was slouching was forcing her to lean in closer than she'd like, and the other was closer into her personal space than she was comfortable with. The humanitarian in her fought the primal instinct of the organism as she made a move to begin peeling away the layers of gauze to get at what was underneath. She was about to pull away, the situation becoming far to uncomfortable for her liking, when Mike's hands suddenly wrapped around her wrists. The pained grimace flashed into malevolent intent as Terry took the gun from her waist. Wildly she struggled in his vice-like grip until Alicia felt the cold steel of her own gun pressed up against the back of her head.

"Now now, pretty thing, no need for any of that," Terry sneered, "We can do this either the easy way or the hard way, doesn't make much of a difference to us." He nodded at Mike and he slowly let go of her, coiled and ready to strike should she attempt something stupid. "Now stand up nice and slow like a good girl."

As she backed away from the man on the ground, Mike stood up and dusted himself off while grinning like a fiend, making a point to feel her up as he patted her down for any possible concealed weapons. Mike's eyes glistened like a hungry predator as his hand slid between Alicia's thighs and smirked coldly at the frightened cry that escaped her, when suddenly the sound of a gunshot rolled like thunder in the open air. Blood and bone splattered over the white paint of Terry's truck as the bullet tore through his skull, the window that had been on the other side imploding. Instinctively the surviving bandit let go of Alicia as he ducked and immediately she took off, dirt kicking up in the gravel as he shot haphazardly at her as she disappeared around the front of the truck. Staying low he slithered along on his belly under the Dodge, keeping out of the sight of the mystery sniper.

Alicia's mind was desperately trying to stop itself from falling over the precipice into complete blind terror. Between the hard travelling, more than run in with the monsters that were anywhere with even half a decent population, this run in with bandits and what they potentially had in mind and now a ghost taking shots at them, she didn't know how much more she could take. If she stood up from her spot behind the back wheel arch she had no idea if the sniper would blow her head off but as she heard the sound of disturbed gravel she looked down to see Terry's head begin to emerge. Instinct kicked in, flight overriding fight as she bolted in an attempt to get to the safety of her own truck.

The sniper looked up from the scope as another shot rang out and he watched as fleeing woman fall. Swearing under his breath his jaw clenched as he kept his anger in check; that hill billy asshole was going to pay for that. Setting his sight through the scope once again, his hands gripped the special issue MK 17 SCAR firmly as his trigger finger became overwhelmingly itchy. Precious minutes slipped by and it was clear bandit and sniper were in a stalemate. From his current angle he couldn't see under the truck so like a phantom he kept low and began to move, keeping the bulk of his attention where his quarry hid.

Terry could here the whimpers of the woman, she was still alive and had fallen behind the relative safety of her old Ford. He knew the bullet had hit but had no real idea just where it had gone through. Besides he had bigger things to worry about, like where the fuck was that damn sniper and how in the hell was he going to kill him? Knowing he couldn't stay under the truck forever but knew that risking a peek would mean certain death; he was in between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Crawling out he crouched by the drivers door he gripped the handle and slowly pulled open the door, cringing as its heavy hinges groaned. He stopped, half expecting to be showered in glass, but there was nothing. Perhaps whoever it was were to far away to hear him? Taking a breath he committed himself and opened the door all the way, snaking his way into the cabin.

The sniper heard the sound of the engine turn over and hurried to get to the position he had picked out, slinging the rife over his shoulder and scaling a trunk of one of the old, gnarled trees that line the road ahead. Within it's branches he had the high ground and a good view of the road. Steadying himself within the fork of the branch and the trunk he readied his weapon. The car weaved over the road, its driver obviously huddled down so far he more than likely couldn't see the road. His mind cleared as he focused on the approaching Dodge, knowing he would only get the chance for one shot.

All Terry could see was sky through the wind shield not daring to sit up properly and expose himself, praying that he wouldn't hit anything along the way. As he came under the shade of the trees that stretched over the bitumen he began to feel a little more optimistic, they would provide him with cover as he made his escape. Daring to peek up just above the steering wheel he saw nothing but dappled green and grey, noticing to late the small flashing glint high above before the wind shield cracked entirely into an elaborate spider web with a hole precisely where his head had been.

As the car lost control and crashed into the ditch, the sniper had already climbed down from his perch to make his way back to the original scene. He wasn't holding onto any hope but he had to make sure one way or another if that woman was still alive or not. If she was dead then he had to make sure she stayed that way, if she wasn't... well he'd figure that out soon enough.

Alicia had never felt anything like the pain she was experiencing right now. She had had her share of bumps and bruises, even broke her arm as a kid, but nothing like the feeling of a hot metal slug ripping in one side and tearing out the other. She wanted to be sick as staying conscious was an increasingly hard battle to fight. Eventually she heard footsteps approaching and thought it was Terry coming back to finish what he started. Moving was complete agony as she reached up and tried to grab the door handle and pull herself up but failed. As a long barrel slowly rounded the front of the pick up she braced herself for the worst.

Well, it wasn't who she thought it was going to be, that was for sure.

A man stood there, his choice of dress marking him as Army. His rifle trained on her he quickly took in the scene before coming to the conclusion she was definitely no threat, but if he didn't do something soon she just might become one. Feebly Alicia tried to swat his hands away from the wound in her side to no effect; she didn't have the energy and even if she did he was far to strong. Once he knew just what he was dealing with the soldier peeled off his shirt and tore it into several pieces, placing a wad on either side side, trying not to be to rough as she cried out, then used another strip to tie around her and keep the makeshift bandages in place.

Pulling the cover off he unveiled what would have been the bandits would be prize. Hauling himself into the ray he opened the sizeable crate and found basic survival items- water, matches, ration packs, torches and batteries among other things. The second, smaller one contained things that were more helpful to him now as he went through the various medical supplies that kept a fairly decent size of ammunition company. Though he could see shells for a shotgun among bullets for a .45 he couldn't find the appropriate weapon they would work for. Grabbing what he needed he jumped back out.

"Who... are you?"

He stopped what he was doing, her voice weak and strained; he was mildly surprised she hadn't passed out by now. "Titus," he eventually replied, "Titus O'Neil." Once he fixed her up as best he could, Titus left her a moment and opened the passenger side door. He considered asking her if she could stand but immediately dismissed it as a stupid question, "This is going to hurt, but we have to get out of here."

"What?" She was confused for a second before again pain lanced through her as carefully as he could Titus picked her up and seated her in the cabin. Closing the door he walked around to the drivers side, picking up his rifle along the way and climbed in. When he was satisfied that the binding would hold for the moment he turned the key and started down the road. "Where are you taking me?"

"Somewhere safe," he answered, his voice sounding muffled and hazy as Alicia finally gave in to the consuming blackness.


	3. Chapter 3

_For the sake of ambience, if you're so inclined, I suggest reading this to the Black Label Society acoustic tracks _Slightly Amped Instrumental, The Blessed Hellride _or_ Spoke On The Wheel _ off the compilation album _Skullage_._

* * *

Alicia woke up from being rocked gently side to side against a backdrop of the sound of pouring rain. The warm air was thick with humidity and carried with it the sound of an acoustic guitar from not to far away. Something felt tight and slightly damp around her waist, looking down she found herself wrapped up in a roll of bandages. Sweat clung uncomfortably to her skin and soaked into the sheets underneath as her hair stuck itself to her neck. Sitting up posed it's own challenge when the constant dull throbbing ache in her side flared sharply when she tried, forcing her to lay down once again. Mind foggy from restless sleep and unable to do much aside from lay there like a couch potato, Alicia decided to take in her surroundings as she tried to piece together the events on how she ended up in her current situation.

She deduced she was in the back of a camper van, the size of the double bed seemed almost constricted in the small space that made up the only bedroom. Above her head were sheer blue curtains drawn across the window to keep the majority of the light out and bathing the room in a cool hue. To her left was a small set of draws that doubled as a night stand, on top of it sat a stoppered plastic jug half full of water with an empty cup beside it. At the sight of it Alicia became acutely aware of the dry but gummy taste in her mouth, like it was full of mucus flavoured cotton balls. Reaching out for the cup her fingers brushed against it, only to send it toppling to the floor with a light clatter as the whole van shook, like it had gone over a pot hole. It was then that a certain fact hit home for her.

They were moving?

The sound of music came to an abrupt end and was followed up by footsteps, the curtain that served as the door was pulled away revealing a young man with bright orange hair that was pulled back into a short pony tail and stubble that was as ginger to match. Alicia froze, arm still extended, not knowing who this guy was or what his intentions were. "You're finally awake," He commented in a distinctive southern drawl with a friendly smile. She wasn't trusting it though, Terry had seemed harmless at first and she paid for it with a bullet.

The stranger seemed to sense her unease as he slowly entered the cramped space and picked up the fallen cup before pouring some water into it. Alicia struggled to sit up, giving him a look like he had just tried to burn her when the stranger attempted to help, causing him to back off. Once she was upright she slowly she took the again offered drink, eyes watching him like a hawk as he went back to stand in the doorway. His arms crossed loosely over his chest and simply returned her gaze nonchalantly. "You can relax, I'm not gonna hurt you," he finally said, "Who do you think patched you up to begin with?"

"How did I get here?" Alicia finally asked, voice raspy from having slept for god only knew how long.

"The big man bought you back from a day trip of scouting," The red head replied, "By the time he got back you were damn near pale as a sheet. It was touch and go there for a while as to if you'd pull through or not." Again the camper van shook from the somewhat rough condition of the back country road, causing her carer to reach out and steady himself. "I'll be back in a second." Keeping his balance as best he could, the man disappeared from her line of sight and called out to whoever was driving, "Hey, Hawkins! Do you think you can try and hit _every_ pot hole? I think you may have missed a few." The response he received was Alicia couldn't quite make out, but the tone she managed to catch conveyed it as familiar sarcasm.

A moment or two later he returned with an apple in one hand, "Here, it's not much but I figured you might be hungry. You've been out for almost three days."

She hesitated at first before taking the offered fruit and took a small, tentative bite, it's crisp flesh positively dripping with juice. "Are you a doctor?"

"I wish." Motioning towards the end of the bed she drew up her legs, giving him a place to sit on the end of it. "I was a nurse. Feel free to take a shot at it if you want, everyone else has, but I can rock that uniform like no-one's business." He grinned as she was unable to hold back the snicker at the thought of this stranger running around in a nurse's dress, "The name is Heath, by the way. Heath Slater."

Unlike her run in with Terry, Heath's concern was genuine, his laid back attitude and attempts at humour disarming. For the first time in what felt like a life time she smiled a little, "Alicia."

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you, I only wish it had been under better circumstances." The almost familiar bump of yet another pot hole shook the vehicle from the rough road, "Sorry about the rough ride, but hopefully we'll be stopping soon to set up camp for the night. The big man doesn't like us staying in one place for to long, and considering just how close those two assholes that almost got you were to our spot, I can't blame him for wanting to pull up stumps and moving." Seeing that the reminder of her experience with the bandits made her uncomfortable he quickly moved the conversation along, "Where were you headed anyway? Or were you just running as far as you could like most of us?"

"I was trying to get to Miami, my parents live down there," Alicia answered truthfully, "My dad has a boat, I thought if they were OK we could all wait this thing out at sea." Concerned welled up inside her when Heath's face seemed to fall, finding an interesting spot on the floral pattern bed covers to stare at all of a sudden. "What's wrong?"

"I... There's no easy way to say this," He began with reluctance, forcing himself to look at her again, "I'm sorry, but Miami got absolutely swamped by those things. Going down there would be a certified death sentence."

The news hit her like a ten ton hammer; Miami, gone? Her mum, dad, grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles... They couldn't _all_ be...

She hadn't realised she had started to cry until Heath scooted a little closer, his hand gently closing around her shoulder in an attempt at offering whatever consolation she could find in it. Wiping her eyes she took a minute to gather herself, "What do we do now?"

Heath simply shrugged, not really knowing the answer himself, "Survive."

He watched her for a moment longer and could already see the fatigue setting in and working along side the bombshell he had just dropped. She may have been awake but Alicia still had a way to go on the road to recovery, both physically and psychologically. The latter he could help with, the former was ultimately up to her own will. "I'll let you get some more rest, I'll be back to check in on you later and see if that dressing needs changing. If you need anything just call out." Standing up as steadily as he could with the swaying motion of the camper he shuffled towards the doorway and began to pull the curtain across to give her some privacy.

"Heath." He stopped, giving her his attention, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," He replied with a small smile, "In times like these, best we can do now is look out for each other, otherwise we may as well all be just like those things out there."

* * *

Three more days had passed before they finally stopped and set up a more permanent camp. The remnants of light from a dying sunset was quickly fading, a gentle breeze blowing through a window that had been left partially ajar giving a slight reprieve to the sticky weather. The rain had stopped for the time being, though the heavy clouds that still hung around looked as though they were promising more. As he had promised, Heath was checking on his handy work and changing the dressing after checking on the stitches by the light of a small LED lantern, satisfied that no infection had decided to settle in.

Suddenly the stationary van rocked a little before foot steps could be heard on its roof, followed by two voices. One she now recognised as Hawkins, the person who had been driving the camper, and the sudden anxiety subsided as fast as it came. She idly wondered what he was doing up there as it sounded like he was setting something up before finally getting down. They listened as two sets of feet wondered off, the quiet conversation they were having halted by the approach of a third person before continuing on.

"What were they doing up there?"

"Setting up stuff to catch any rain that may fall tonight," Heath replied as he finished up, making sure the bandage was firm but not uncomfortably tight. "Fresh water is something the big man has been rather insistent on, but it makes sense to me. At least we know if it falls from the sky it can hardly be a contaminated source. That said we'll still boil it, just to make sure."

When he was done she pulled on a fresh shirt, "You think this... plague... infected people through the water?"

"Can't say for sure, though I wouldn't be surprised if it were a possibility."

A moment later someone knocked on the camper's aluminium door, her carer gave Alicia a reassuring look before disappearing to see who it was. A moment later Titus appeared, and after a few quick words Heath left the van. She was now alone with her rescuer for the first time since he pulled her out of the mess she had gotten herself into.

He was huge, the interior of the small van making him look even bigger as he leaned against the table bolted to the floor in its little booth like set up. He didn't say anything, his arms folded over his broad chest and stared at her, almost like he was making some sort of calculated evaluation. "Alicia Fox, born in Florida but had been living in Philadelphia for at least the past five years with a Mike Mizanin."

The simple statement almost made her jump as it broke the silence that had enveloped them, "How did you...?"

"While you were recovering I went through the ID in your handbag and the registration papers in your truck. Nothing personal, but I have to know what sort of people I'm dealing with and if they're a threat to the camp or not." The calm, matter-of-fact statement was unapologetic. "What did you do before the outbreak?"

Alicia quickly gathered he wits, ignoring the small voice of indignity protesting that this stranger had gone through her personal belongings without her consent. If their situations had been reversed she more than likely would have done the exact same thing. "I worked in a pharmacy, filling prescriptions and stuff like that."

"So you're familiar with prescription drugs and what they do for which ailment?"

"Yes."

He fell silent again as he considered this, having someone other than Slater knowing what to grab from a chemist in a foraging expedition could definitely be useful. But that would all be a moot point if she didn't decide to stick around. "Slater tells me you were heading to Miami. Do you still intend to go down there?"

She didn't answer right away. She had some time to absorb the impact of the news Heath had given her, but had been a little unsure what to do with it. Should she still continue on, despite his warning? Or simply abandon the notion, and with it her family? The latter hit her even harder than she thought it would; she had already been forced to aleave Mike, at his urging or not, could she really have the strength to do that to her family too?

Titus eventually straightened up, he knew he wasn't going to get an answer right now, or at the very least a straight one. Besides it's not as if she was fit to go anywhere just yet. He knew what it was like to have a bullet tear through his flesh and that it would take more than a few days of bed rest to bounce back. "We'll come back to that, besides it's not as if you're in a state to be on your own at the moment." Taking a few steps he reached the door and opened it, "Since you're going to be with us for a while in the meantime, you may as well meet the others. Besides, dinner will be ready soon."

A little hesitant at first she followed, taking his offered hand to help her down the few stairs, and together they headed toward a small fire pit in which the rest of the banded survivors had gathered.

* * *

As the time passed Alicia slowly got to know the band of travellers that had taken her in and saved her life. There was Heath of course, who she quickly figured out was the jester of the group. He always seemed to be ready with a joke or some quip to try and keep the spirits of anyone around him from falling into the depressive darkness that the new world was trying to inflict upon them all. Curt Hawkins was the man behind the wheel of the camper van she had woken up in and had been Heath's best friend since they were kids. He had been a mechanic by trade with ambitions to open up his own shop for customising cars. Molly Holly was from San Francisco and had been a school teacher who had been visiting family. Kaitlyn Bonin was a Texas girl born and bred, hailing from a small cattle ranch a couple of hundred miles from Houston. Tyson Kidd was a Canadian stuntman who had been working on a television series when the trouble started and had unable to get back past the border in time. Though in the long run it hadn't seemed to matter when some of the infected had started migrating north.

These were the people that had done their best to make Alicia feel welcome among the band of travellers. On the opposite end of the scale were the elements of the group that either rubbed her the wrong way or there was just something about them that she didn't trust, like they wouldn't hesitate to throw anyone to the proverbial wolves if it meant they could save their own skin.

The number one spot on top of this list was a short, stout man by the name of Paul Heyman. An entrepreneur blessed with a silver tongue and sharp intellect, Heyman seemed to be constantly measuring the other people of the group. While he wasn't out to cause discord among the others, he had a tendency to side with whomever could give him the most advantage in any situation that he could stand to benefit from. There was an older woman by the name of Sable Mero, who to Alicia seemed as though there was nothing she wouldn't do to keep a man in her back pocket and was adept at using passive aggression as a means to an end. She doubted the platinum blond had done an honest day's work in her life. Two Puerto Rican cousins who simply called themselves Primo and Epico rounded out the group that Alicia decided to keep an eye on, their overall attitudes and occasionally outright misogynistic views on how things should be run seemed as if they were thrown up from the 1950's. If she was honest with herself she wouldn't have been surprised if someone told her they were gang bangers.

Keeping them all together and in line was Titus O'Neil. A man who, up until three months a go, had been in the army since he was eighteen. Dedicated service and numerous acts of valour on the battlefield had risen him through the ranks quickly before joining the Special Forces branch. As a Green Beret he was easily the most qualified to lead this group of mismatched survivors as they struggled to find their place in this dangerous new world. Everyone in camp had a job to do and he made sure they did it, not simply to keep the camp running in an orderly fashion, but keeping them busy gave them something else to focus on other than the current calamitous state of their world.

Alicia was in the middle of sewing up a hole in a pair of pants she had managed to tear the other day, Kaitlyn had been showing her how to set up snares and to look for signs that would be the best place to put them. She tried not to think of the idea that some little rabbit would potentially be trapped and ultimately lose its life to her handiwork, when a shadow loomed over her shoulder. Taking in the silhouette that spilled over the ground she easily figured out who it was. "Afternoon, care to pull up a stump?"

Titus took his place on a fallen log opposite, watching the flash of the needle as it weaved through the cloth, "Molly's lessons have paid off, I see."

"It would seem so," Alicia replied, finishing up the last few stitches and putting the finished work aside before giving him her full attention, "Though I doubt you came over here merely to comment on my sewing."

"You're right. I still need to know if you intend to leave, or if you're staying."

Now that she was done with her work she abandoned the sunlight in favour of the shade next to the military man. Alicia sighed as she thought for a moment, her gaze wandering up as she looked up at the clouds that were lazily coasting by. "I'm not a survivalist, even with everything you and Kaitlyn shown me how to do so far," she finally answered, "Mike was always the one who lived by the boy scout motto of 'be prepared'. It was him who had always insisted we at least had those two trunks you found in the truck, plus teaching me how to shoot. Despite all that... The simple truth is I wouldn't make it on my own." Slowly she stopped her cloud watching and turned to Titus. The offered half smile was sad and didn't quite reach her eyes, "It looks like you're stuck with me."

He simply nodded, knowing better than to probe any deeper. Her expression was one they all possessed at one time or another; there wasn't anyone in the little group that hadn't lost someone close to them, whether it be family, friends or lovers. Standing up he brushed any dirt from his pants then offered her his hand. "If you're done with those I'd like you to go and give Sable a hand bottling the water. At the rate she's going we'll lose more than we've collected."

Repressing a groan she instead gave him a mock salute before going in search of the former gold digger. Whether she liked her new situation or not was irrelevant, the world had changed and if they all wanted to survive they had to adapt. With this in mind as she approached Sable and helped lift the heavy bucket to pour it's contents into a nearby jerry can, Alicia slowly began to lock away the painful feelings for her past life, determined to move on.


End file.
